Gyeongnam Office of Education Allocates 7.4735 Trillion Won in Supplementary Budget

Additional Support for School Operating Expenses Due to Public Utility Fee Increases

The Gyeongnam Office of Education has prepared the 1st supplementary budget for the Gyeongnam Provincial Education Special Account at a scale of 7.4735 trillion won.

According to the provincial Office of Education on the 7th, this supplementary budget increased by 287 billion won compared to the original budget.

Gyeongnam Office of Education.
Photo by Lee Seryeong

The Office of Education stated that the budget was focused on improving a safe and healthy school education environment, supporting the operation of curricula that embrace both inside and outside of schools, strengthening field-oriented educational welfare, enhancing the public nature of early childhood education with play and rest, and providing additional support for school operating expenses due to public utility fee increases.

Superintendent Park Jong-hoon explained, "This supplementary budget is a valuable fund to help our students fully develop their future capabilities in a safer and healthier educational environment."

The main budget allocations include ▲989 billion won for improving aging school environments and expanding facilities ▲47.7 billion won for new and relocated schools and resolving overcrowded classes ▲14 billion won for improving meal services and sports facilities ▲25.6 billion won for seismic reinforcement and restroom improvements.

▲1.6 billion won for establishing an artificial intelligence (AI) education foundation and bridging the digital education gap ▲1.1 billion won for operating public online schools ▲10 billion won for enhancing vocational high school education capacity in new industry sectors ▲1.6 billion won for operating online learning rooms outside of schools were also allocated.

▲1.8 billion won for building an integrated student growth support system ▲2 billion won for supporting small schools and improving educational conditions in underserved areas ▲5.5 billion won for expanding meal service machinery and equipment ▲4 billion won for improving dormitory environments in boarding high schools were also included.

▲2.5 billion won for operating after-school programs in kindergartens ▲1.2 billion won for supporting free education in private kindergartens ▲500 million won for fostering a play-centered educational culture were also reflected.

An additional 12.1 billion won was added to school operating expenses, a 4% increase compared to the original budget, due to recent increases in public utility fees and inflation.

The budget proposal submitted to the 405th regular session of the Provincial Assembly will undergo preliminary review by the Education Committee and comprehensive review by the Budget and Accounts Special Committee from the 7th to the 22nd, before final approval.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.